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Amy Winehouse's Brother Says Singer Died of Bulimia

Amy Winehouse's older brother Alex says the late British singer died of an eating disorder, not from years of drug and alcohol abuse.

"She suffered from bulimia very badly. That's not, like, a revelation — you knew just by looking at her," Alex Winehouse told the UK's Guardian. "She would have died eventually, the way she was going, but what really killed her was the bulimia."

Winehouse told the Guardian his sister developed the disorder in her late teens and calls it a "real dark, dark issue." Amy Winehouse died in 2011 at the age of 27. The official cause of death was ruled to be alcohol poisoning. "I think that it left her weaker and more susceptible," Alex Winehouse says of the condition. "Had she not had an eating disorder, she would have been physically stronger."

Winehouse spoke to the paper ahead of a new exhibit at London's Jewish Museum, "Amy Winehouse: A Family Portrait," which features photographs and artifacts from the Grammy-winner's life. He describes his sister: "She was annoying, frustrating, a pain in the bum. But she was also incredibly generous, very caring. She'd do anything for anyone, she really would. She was loyal — as a sister, daughter and friend. ... She was a really good person. And horrible in other respects."